Never Resting
by Mesataki
Summary: I'm not looking for answers, only for the trainer who abandoned me.
1. Waco

I was roused out of sleep quite abruptly by an unfamiliar light. For five years have I been seeing red each time I emerged, but now… now it was a different color. Blue. I wondered what it meant, but it didn't stop me from prancing about. I pushed my trainer, tugged at her arm. I'm out, so why not play if there's no battle to be had?

"Slow down, Waco," she said, her voice unusually soft.

I stopped and tilted my head. Universal sign for curiosity. She was strange today. By now, we would've been skipping down a hill or exploring some caves. What's wrong with her?

She looked hesitant for a second and reached into her pack. "Do you want something to eat? Maybe some berries?" she asked, handing me a small bunch.

I was _starving_. That was unusual, too. Just how long had I been sleeping? I accepted on them and noticed a strange bitter taste but didn't complain. Humans couldn't tell what good berries smelled like, but my trainer tried, so I wouldn't blame her.

"Let's go for a walk."

She stiffly grabbed my paw and led me down a path. We took our time – in no rush whatsoever while I enjoyed the scenery. Cloud-tipped mountains stood above us while green fields colored the ground below. The sun was high – birds a-singing. I don't know how else to describe what most would call a 'perfect day.' I breathed in the mountain air, my body recognizing it as my natural home.

I tapped my club loudly as we approached the valley below. Though my trainer thinks it's just a habit of mine, it served to warn off others: trained Pokemon on its way – leave if you're not looking for a fight, stay if you want to be beaten or captured. My parents were apparently the latter…

A solitary tree stood firmly in the center. My trainer led me there where we sat down and watched clouds together.

"That looks like a…" She paused, biting her lip. "A Buneary! Yeah, that's right… And that one looks like you."

To what many would have considered an ominous sign, she merely giggled at. A fluffy animal skull hung in the sky, and I have to admit, it did sort of look like me. I laughed, sounding more like a series of short barks to anyone but my trainer. I pointed vigorously at another cloud.

"It's um… I dunno what that is," she replied, frowning as she tried to remember. "It looks like a bush to me, but then again, _all_ of them look like bushes at first glance."

I suddenly felt tired and yawned loudly. The peacefully drifting clouds did little to keep me awake.

"Feeling tired, Waco? You can take a nap if you want."

I nodded and rolled over, my eyes lulling asleep as she continued murmuring to me what she saw in the sky. In a way… her voice was my lullaby – always talking to me when I slept out my ball… for five… years…

Zzz….

~ * ~

It felt cold when I woke up. My gaze swept the valley – she was nowhere in sight. I leapt up to my feet – crying out what she knew was what I called her. No answer – dread seeped past my tough skin and I began to shiver.

The mountain – maybe she went back? I began to run upwards, the only noise drowned out by my frantic footsteps. Something suddenly appeared in my direction – a graveler. It stood ready to attack, slowly sizing me up. I had forgotten to tap my bone – and now, I'd have to fight it off. I've fought far worse than just a graveler. A quick throw of my bone and it fled. I caught the returning club on muscle memory rather than conscious effort. I still had a long way to go.

~ * ~

I reached the town where I stopped tapping my bone. Humans did not understand my message; they'd sooner try to capture me than run away – such was their foolhardy nature. I made haste to the hotel where we had checked in together and tried to remember which room was the one we had stayed in. The human at the desk gave me a funny look as I entered the elevator. I hit the button that looked most familiar with my club, having seen my trainer do this quite a few times already.

Going up was never really easy for me and I felt a little queasy when I got off, but at least the halls were beginning to become familiar to me. I made turns on pure intuition before I came to my trainer's door. I sniffed around the area, noting there was an earthy scent unmistakably mine drifting behind the door. Now… how to open it? I could not simply push it like I did in the hotel lobby, nor was there a button I could just simply push. As it were, this was my only option. I lifted my club and knocked the door with little to no effort.

She wasn't there. Frustrated, I began to look around the room for any clues that I could follow. No luck there, my trainer had taken everything with her. I was the only thing left behind. I couldn't understand it – was I simply not good enough for her expectations? I've won most of my battles, I've guarded her in her sleep when she thought I was resting, I listened to her every time something was troubling her – what have I done for her to forget five years of friendship?

Wait.

I picked up a small bottle off the ground and examined it. There was a bit of fluid in it still, but very minute. I sniffed it.

Bitterness.

I thought back to the berries – hadn't they tasted unusually bitter? Had my trainer… drugged me? There was just no way! No! I threw the bottle as hard as I could. It hit the wall and landed on a machine - the ones humans always liked to put on desks. I turned, ready to make my way out and leave.

"So… I've let go of Waco…"

I froze and turned around. There was no one there, yet her voice… I determined that it came from the machine and approached it carefully. I climbed on top of the chair and listened closely.

"I don't know if I did the right thing, Mom…" Her voice was so sad, I couldn't stay angry, but the question always lingered. Why?

"I know it's hard, sweetie."

"I… I suppose it was for the best. I'm shutting the computer off now. I'll see you at home."

_Home…_ I think I remembered where my trainer lives. It's far away, but no distance is too great for me. I'll walk the land, because I am a part of it. For my trainer.

~ * ~

Rain came in heavily. I dragged my club behind me, shivering and coughing in the blasted weather. I hated it – hated how the water seemed to pass right through my skin and chill me to the very core. Normally, I would've been walking underneath an umbrella or waiting in a dry place while she brought me one. She knew how I hated the cold and water, but she wasn't here with me, so I had to swim my way through it all.

It was quiet, but the town was always quiet. I grew up here before she and I began our journey together, so I know it well. Our home was that way, past the oak tree and dwarfed between far larger houses. Dim light shone through the windows. They were still awake.

I stood on the very tip of my toes, straining to look in. Inside laid my trainer, on her bed and dressed in white. Her skin was unnaturally pale and there were all these… machines surrounded her. What was going on?

I tapped the windows, hoping she would open her eyes to look at me. She didn't, and instead, the bedroom door opened and a couple of humans walked in.

"So… that's it?" my trainer's matriarch asked. Her voice was muffled, but if I pressed my head against the glass, I could make out the words.

"… 'fraid so… -upport… Dee-en-ar…"

I wondered what it all meant, but from the way they looked, I knew it wasn't anything good. I circled around the house to the front door and knocked on it with my club. The door swung open. My trainer's patriarch stood there. For a second, he looked confused, perhaps expecting another human. Then, he shifted his sight downwards and saw me.

"You!" he said. "I thought she…"

Maybe he did not understand that I wanted answers. I wanted to see her.

"Just go back," he said to me. "The mountain was where she left you, didn't she? Just go back!"

The door slammed and I was left alone in the rain again. There was nothing to be gained from just sitting here while water poured around me. I turned around and began walking to find shelter, dragging my club with me. Why will they not let me home?

~ * ~

I waited until all the humans left her alone. The door gave way to my club, granting me access to my home. It felt strange, being an intruder to a place I knew well. My feet knew the gray halls better than I did and I let them take me to her room where I hopped onto her soft bed. I tapped my club against the headboard to get her attention.

Wake up – I shook her gently. She didn't move, so I tried it a little more roughly. I whined loudly to see if she would respond to my cry like she always did, but that didn't work as well. I thought back to a time a similar situation happened: she was sleeping and would not get up in time for her match. I had to push her off the bed; maybe it'd work this time, too. So I pushed.

She fell… but she didn't get back up. I jump down and poked and prodded her… I didn't understand why wouldn't she wake up? It's been a long time – can't we play some more? Perhaps it's just best to let her sleep. Come to think of it, I felt sleepy, too, and I moved her arm so that it was draped around me as I curled in close. Her body felt cold and I regretted not being a fire type. However, it felt… nice to be back here, even when she wouldn't respond to me. My contentedness was short-lived.

A scream pierced the air, and I jumped up – the matriarch stood in the doorway, her face pale and staring at me. What had I done?

The patriarch came in, white hands gripping a sphere tightly. He threw it at me, and it bounced off of my thick skull before pulling me in. This _is_ my ball, right? I could smell it, but my ball wouldn't have pulled me in like that. It wouldn't have let a growing darkness wrap around me, but then I realized: I wasn't being returned.

I was being captured.

Panic overruled my logic, and I struggled madly. I tore away at the shadows, ripping off the bits that clung onto me. I howled as I emerged – striking my club against the ground while holding my ball in the other paw. Then, without warning, I turned around and leapt through the window – the glass scraping past against my rough hide, but I paid no attention to it. I was more worried about her.

~ * ~

My gut told me that they had placed my trainer in the black box. I watched from the bushes, observing the humans as they lowered her into a pit. Was this some sort of human ritual? It was an odd one and I saw no real purpose to it. What were they doing to her? Some of the humans stood up to say a few things before they sat down, and then I realized something. Why were they all wearing black?

My heart dropped to my stomach once I saw them shoveling dirt into the pit. She would not be able to breathe underground – are they trying to hurt her? I would not allow it.

I rushed from cover, howling a battle cry. Startled humans scrambled to get away – some released their own Pokemon to fight me off. I saw a wartortle and bellsprout – a disadvantageous matchup, but I've fought against worse odds.

I lunged forward, putting all of my strength into hurling my club. It sped from my paw – knocking my enemies down before I plucked it from the air. I gave a low growl, threatening them to stand down. The humans would not tolerate such an act.

"Water Gun!"

"Leech Seed!"

A torrent of water forced me back, stunning me long enough for the seeds to take root and drain me of my strength. I wasn't going down that easily. I forced my way out of the vines, tearing them off with my free paw as I tried to bash away the wartortle that was coming too close.

"Growlithe, Tackle!"

I was sent sprawling onto the ground, my club flying out of my paws. The leech seed took advantage of my momentary slack and tightened even more. I struggled to breathe and struggled desperately, the growlithe still pinning me. I'd have to continue this fight without my weapon. My paw balled up into a fist and struck out, catching the growlithe's jaw. It howled in pain, recoiling long enough for me to shove it off and stand up. In retaliation, it breathed fire on me – burning my skin, but the vines were weakened as well. With one final tug, the leech seed came off. I was free to attack and retrieve my club now. It was lying on the ground not too far away from me, so I quickly ran and picked it back up.

By the time I looked up to fight back – I saw there were many growlithes now and there was still the bellsprout and wartortle to contend with. Let them come, I thought to myself.

I began loudly tapping my club against the ground.


	2. Aftermath

Marowak attacks funeral

April 4, 2042

Katie Smith, a young trainer diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, passed away quite recently. The nerve cells in her brain and spinal cord gradually degenerated over the years when she had been traveling as an aspiring trainer. At her funeral, a crazed marowak charged headlong into the crowd and viciously attacked everyone. It was only due to intervention by the police's part and two of Smith's trainer friends that the marowak was subdued. During the hard-fought battle, the skull pokemon eventually succumbed to its exhaustion. The medical staff at the PokeCenter declared it dead on arrival.

"It was strange," said Smith's friend. "It was like a walking skeleton – I don't think it's eaten in days. Come to think of it, this marowak kind of looks like the same one Katie released a few months ago, but I'm not sure about it."

~ * ~

The graveyard was silent. Broken headstones littered the field, to be repaired in the future. Night casted its dark shadow – the moon obscured behind gloomy clouds. Only the dim street lamps provided light. If anyone were around, they would not dare to walk past.

A wind suddenly picked up, rustling the leaves of the trees. A loud tapping noise followed it, echoing throughout the entire cemetery before dying out with the winds.

I never rest.

~ * ~

(A/N): Yeah, depressing. The end was 'partly' inspired by the ghost of Pokemon Tower in Lavender Town. So what do you think?


End file.
